… continued from previous post: http://sparksphotography.com/blog/?p=155
So you see there is quite a need for models of all sizes, shapes, & ages. But where do you start if you’re not lucky enough to be “discovered”?
Here are a few tips:
1) It is going to take a while for you to gain the knowledge and experience to be a model so if at possible start at a young age and understand that you have got to be patient.
2) There are hundreds of websites about modeling all over the internet. A simple Google search will give you more information than you can read in a lifetime. Research topics that interest you.
3) Look through fashion magazines and study what the models are doing. Observe the poses and facial expressions. Then practice these same poses and expressions into a mirror. Do this again and again and again. Practice as if the mirror is a camera… click …pose … click… pose … click. I absolutely guarantee this is very helpful. Nothing is more frustrating to a Photographer than to have to tell a “model” what to do at every click of the shutter.
4) Modeling is obviously about your “looks” and your “moves”. You must have a selection of photographs of yourself (your Portfolio). Don’t plan to see and Agent or make contacts with potential clients until you own about a dozen really great portfolio samples. This might take you 6 months or more but it is critical that you have really great photos that exhibit your face, figure, and personality.
5) Contact Professional Photographers and offer to pose for them for free. Many Professional Photographers enjoy (and need) updating their photo portfolios. Trading your time for their skill is usually a win-win. Don’t bother with amateur photographers because they are still in training themselves.
6) It may be that you can’t find a good Professional Photographer who will photograph you for Free. Don’t stress…there are going to be talented Photographers who will help you build your Portfolio for a modest investment of a few hundred dollars per session.
7) The more time YOU invest into planning and preparing for your portfolio photo sessions the better the results will be. Approach your Photographer with the idea that YOU will put together a bunch of cool outfits & props and even some potential “locations” in exchange for their valuable time & expertise. This makes it so easy for the Photographer because it saves him (her) 75% of the time it takes to put together a great photo session.
8) As I said, your portfolio is a collection of your best Photos. You should have Prints at a minimum size of 8×10 inches and bound in a nice binder. Sam Flax has a great collection of these binders. Additionally you will want these same Photos in a digital file (jpeg format) that can be digitally delivered to potential clients (i.e. e-mailed).
9) The other piece of the Portfolio puzzle is a “leave behind” business card that shows some of your portfolio, your physical statistics (height, weight, cloth sizes) and contact information such as an Agent or your direct contact info (email, Facebook, Phone number, etc.) This model’s business card is often called a COMP Card (on the West Coast a ZED Card). Make no mistake; the Comp Card is VERY important. Most clients pick their models entirely from a stack of Comp Cards without ever meeting the model in person. There is a lot to tell you about a good Comp Card but I’ll have to go there in a future blog post.
Feel Free to send me you questions and comments.
All My Best to You,
DSparks
